Just to Watch You Be Seen
by HoneyBee31
Summary: AU InuKag Kagome learns the difference between illusion and reality in New York's glittering social elite, particularly its darling playboy Inuyasha Takahashi.


This is a one-shot that was inspired by Norah Jones' song I've Got to See You Again. It's my take on the playboy-Inuyasha-type of story, so let me know what you think.

* * *

Kagome smiled into her martini as she watched the blur of colours on the dance floor. Standing on the sidelines, the young lawyer quietly observed the intricate movements, both dancing and conversational, that complicated the social lives of New York's aristocracy. As a member of the _nouveau riche, _Kagome was not deemed worthy of any attention at these kinds of events. Only in heart of supporting the children's hospital had she bought the pricy ticket to the extravagant gala. Donning a modest gown, she chatted with Sango, who was similarly snubbed by the upper crust peacocks.

Pausing the conversation to take another sip of her delicious drink, Sango snorted and glared at the dance floor. "I don't know why he bothers to bring me to these things," though she tried to sound indignant, the hurt in her voice still carried "those gold-dipped floozies occupy all his time."

Kagome smiled in understanding "You knew what you were getting into when you married him," Kagome reminded her, knowing it was in vain. "Sango, Miroku may be out there dancing with them, but he always goes home with you."

Her companion sighed, "I know, but they demand so much of his time." She shifted in her high heels, and crossed her arms over her bared midriff. "And he talked me into wearing this stupid outfit. I'll tell you what Kagome, never marry any of these rich bastards. I never understood what the _old_ stood for in _old money_ until I realized it stands for old, bitchy mother."

Both women's eyes moved to an elderly lady draped in finery that glared at them across the room. Sango lost her dejected posture to meet the gaze square on, lips pursed but shaping a rough smile. It was not returned. Kagome tried not to laugh, though she felt bad for her friend. The stereotypical dislike Miroku's mother held for the young fighter that had captured her son's heart was ridiculous.

Turning her back to talk to Kagome again, Sango huffed "And as if his mother isn't bad enough, his best friend was taking up tons of his time too. What, is there some kind of auction where I can bid on time with my husband?"

Kagome laid a sympathetic hand on Sango's silk-covered arm. "If there was, you could never keep up with them. I think Inuyasha has just as much, if not more money, than Miroku's family."

Kagome returned her gaze to the dance floor. While Miroku was well known for his conversation, his dancing skills were somewhat lacking. No such complaints were ever lodged against Inuyasha. Even from here, his grace was apparent. Strength carefully controlled, he piloted his partner around the floor with deceiving ease, his unusual silver hair catching the light and shining brighter than his partner's dress.

Sango laughed a bit "Well he's stopped coming around too. Probably snagged himself a new skank to entertain himself with for awhile." Leaning forward and whispering conspiratorially "I heard he left with a young woman from that ball they held at Christmas for cancer research."

"You don't say…" Kagome mumbled, her face flushed and she tried to hide it behind her glass.

"I almost feel bad for her. I've heard the rumors that he's an amazing lover," Sango eyed him for a minute before nodding "I'd believe it, with dancing like that. But he's not exactly looking for commitment."

"Maybe neither was she" Kagome rebutted before she could help herself. At Sango's surprised gaze, she covered defensively "Just playing lawyer. You know we argue everything…"

It was weak, but Sango had too many other things on her mind to pursue it. Kagome breathed a sigh of relief. "C'mon Sango, let's get you a dance with the husband of yours."

Gripping the arm of the weakly struggling fighter, lord knows if Sango really wanted free of a girl like Kagome it would have been a pinch, Kagome dragged Sango to the edge of the dance floor.

Kagome stared expectantly at Miroku, who currently had an aged widow whirling in his arms. Whether it was her sharp gaze, or the shy but imploring blush that graced Sango's features, Miroku politely dismissed his partner to sweep his wife into the dance.

Almost immediately the murmuring began but Sango was too enthralled in the dance to notice. Kagome smiled warmly at them before looking away. She quickly withdrew into the crowd to get lost in the faces once again.

Once her anonymity was safely secured by distance, she let her defenses fall a bit to gaze longingly at the dancers. Well at one dancer in particular. Inuyasha still spun around the floor, his partner an exquisite brunette in an emerald dress. Their dancing also drew eyes and whispers, for although this particular lady was married, it was well known that little facts such as that seldom stopped Inuyasha.

She frowned, remembering the fact that these flittering peacocks knew that she had left with Inuyasha. Yes, she, the plain, normal Kagome had too fallen prey to his charms. She wished to tell Sango how correct she was in her assessment that he was an amazing lover. Her body still burned at the thought of his touch, his lips so seductive on her neck.

Flustered, she took a hurried sip of her cocktail, almost choking on it. She retreated to the bar to order another one. The young bartender flirted with her but he held no interest. His plain handsomeness could not capture her attention, not after the wild, exoticness that was Inuyasha.

Taking her drink, she leaned against one of the elegant pillars, lost in thought. Okay so maybe the children hadn't been the only ones in her heart when she decided to attend this gala. She hadn't been expecting a repeat performance of the Christmas ball. Maybe she just wanted to see him again. Even if she had to share him with everyone else in the room, at least he was in some part hers.

She had known was she was getting into when she accepted his invitation. Even attending one of these types of affairs was enough to learn of Inuyasha's reputation. Since becoming partner at her prestigious firm, Kagome had attended plenty. Normally she was a levelheaded woman, not one to bother with rich playboys and their lechery. Though Inuyasha was certainly no normal playboy, he had not drawn her attention until they had both attended a gala at the Museum of Modern Art. She had been staring at Van Gough's _Starry Night_, so lost in the strokes of the painting that she had not heard him approach.

"It's one of my favorite's too." He whispered in a gallery-appropriate tone. "Peaceful, yet turbulent. Plain, yet still breath-taking. A scene so ordinary… but you can't help but be captured in its dark beauty."

She did not turn to look at him "I always wondered how someone could see the world this way. How does the sky translate to this?" she tipped her head to the side in inquisition.

He let out a soft chuckle "If you're confused by this painting, you'd better not venture into the rest of the museum." Apparently ignoring his own advice, he placed a hand on the small of her back and steered her towards the other paintings "They only get stranger from here."

The two of them had toured the rest of the museum that was open for the gala, making little comments and jokes about the various works but mostly standing in companionable, reverent silence. When they returned to the crowd, Inuyasha turned to say something to her but a young woman glided over to him and wrapped a possessive arm around his, inquiring about where he had been. After polite introductions Kagome crept away once the attention was off her.

Inuyasha was more than a playboy and that made her curious. She had resigned herself to observing him from afar like the rest of his admirers of lower class. Kagome had witnessed enough of their polite rejections to know that he was off-limits. The only women he dated for prolonged periods had families with just as much money and prestige as he did.

Whether it was the sheer loneliness of Christmas in the city without a lover, or maybe all the martinis she had engaged that particular evening, but the Christmas ball had her blood pumping. She strode over to Inuyasha with a sultry look and practically pulled him on the dance floor. While she was not as skilled as the women who had been dancing their whole lives, she felt she had held her own against him. When he approached her at the end of the night and guided her to his small sports car, she thought she was in heaven.

She hadn't known what heaven was until that night, when his lips and fingers and skin drew her into euphoria over and over. When the harsh light morning struck her, Kagome knew what she was…another woman to warm his bed. She had gotten what she thought she wanted. Now she could only hope that Inuyasha was out of her system, burned from her blood.

As she collected her things, she smiled at his peacefully sleeping face. She would leave quickly and spare both of them the awkwardness of goodbye. Though the expensive bedpost was devoid of notches, Kagome assumed he had a record of his conquests so she left a little note of goodbye with her name, just in case.

So here she was, gazing from the shadows at him. Their night had not purged him from her blood, but lodged him into her brain. His gasps of ecstasy still burned in her ears, the memory of him filling her made her legs wobble. So she had come to watch him be seen. Knowing it was cowardly, she had dressed plainly to avoid his attention and slunk away from him the entire night, not wanting to force acknowledgement.

Thinking it was safe to look, she watched him move and speak with the ease of practice. How many of the lines he had used on her was he using right now? Without warning his gaze met hers and held it. His eyes shifted from passive pleasantness to burning determination as he stared at her. She was held immobile until his partner called his attention, breaking their gaze and the spell he wove on her.

Downing her remaining martini harshly, almost choking on all the strong alcohol, she deposited her empty glass on the table. The mad urge to flee possessed her. She just had to get out of there. Wildly trying to remember where she had deposited her purse, she kept moving in hopes of avoiding detection.

It was all in vain. "Kagome!" her senior partner called over to her "Come over here for a minute, there's someone I want you to meet."

Sighing, Kagome made her way over to where he was standing. Strangely she was not surprised to see Inuyasha standing beside him, chatting away and looking as handsome as ever.

"You bellowed?" She teased, trying to appear unmoved by Inuyasha's presence. Ken was one of the founding partners of her firm and she looked up to him. He tended to treat her a bit like his daughter, which was heart warming and infuriating at the same time.

"Young Inuyasha here was just asking me about our newest partner and I thought, how better to get to know her than to talk to her yourself?" He grinned, taking Kagome's forearm and towing her over to Inuyasha's side. "It is not often that the princes of New York ask about us humble, working folk."

Inuyasha smiled charmingly "We think nothing of the sort, Mr. Patterson. I was merely wondering when your firm began employing their teenage daughters as partners."

Ken let out a laugh as Kagome's faced reddened, both with anger and with embarrassment. "I'll have you know _Mr. Takahashi_ that I earned my way up the ladder, which takes time and dedication. I know such a concept may be difficult for you to understand."

Laughing again, Ken pat Inuyasha on the back "Watch out for this one, my boy." He declared jovially "She can be a real man-eater." Mrs. Patterson called over to him, eager to dance. Ken left the young pair to do so, unknowingly allowing a sea of tension to flow in.

"Oh I know what a man-eater you can be." Inuyasha eyed her "Although I was certainly surprised. I never would have figured you for the one night stand type."

She glared at him "So now _I'm_ the one night stand type!" She poked him in the chest "I knew what was going to happen in the morning, I just beat you to the punch. Is that how you really get your jollies, kicking love-struck girls to the wayside?"

Now she knew she may have been drawing attention at this point, so she let out a shaky breath and relaxed her face back to a pleasant smile. Inuyasha looked at first surprised and then annoyed. In a composed face she uttered so that only he could hear "It's just damaged pride that brings you here. You're mad that I left you before you could leave me. Well too bad. I have some dignity and I intended to leave with it intact. In fact I would still like to keep it and I am therefore leaving right now. Goodbye, Mr. Takahashi." She primly held out her hand for him to shake, knowing that Ken might still be watching her.

Eying the hand for a minute, Inuyasha smirked and used it to propel her effortlessly onto the dance floor before coming up behind her to bring her into his arms.

After regaining her equilibrium enough to pick up the dance, she looked up at him in confusion. What was with this guy? She had just allowed him an easy, non-confrontational way to put this all behind them. Or at least pretend it was all behind them. The heat of his body so near to her own made her flush, drawing to the front of her mind memories of what had happened the last time they were this close. His arm held her in place loosely but his hand clasped hers in a tight embrace.

"Maybe I'm not ready to say goodbye yet." She felt the muscles in his arm flex as he drew her closer "Maybe I never wanted to say goodbye in the first place."

Confusion left her mind reeling but Kagome remained defensive. "I don't know what game you're playing here Inuyasha," She squirmed a bit to try to put more room between them. The proximity was affecting her, making her mind swim. Making her want to believe that his entreaties were real. She needed reality back. "but it's a dangerous one. Not for you, but for me."

There, that was as close to an admission of vulnerability that he was going to get. Why couldn't he just let her go? As desperate as she'd been before to get into his arms, she was now just as desperate to get away.

"Who says I'm playing a game?" he asked, though the question was more rumbled out of his chest than produced by his vocal chords. He almost sounded…hurt?

"I've heard the rumors, hell I've seen it for myself. You go through women like water and you're already had your sip of me." Her own loneliness settled in, making her depressed.

"If women are like water, then maybe I just needed to find the one I liked the taste of." He countered, then his voice deepened "And I definitely liked the taste of you." He spun her out then drew her back in again, closer than appropriate and Kagome felt her ears burn at the whispers. She couldn't meet his gaze as she felt him tuck an errant strand of her up-do behind her ear. A weird feeling in her stomach bloomed as he traced the shell with a careful finger. "Besides, when did Harvard start teaching its lawyers to believe everything they hear?"

She was a goner and she knew it. Kagome had to get out of there fast or she was going to be tumbling back onto his silk sheets. She remained silent and they danced out the remainder of their dance before she pulled back from his arms. "I can't do this" was all she said before smiling politely and walking off the dance floor, the next young-miss taking her place before he could offer any protest.

Saying her goodbyes to Sango and Ken, she allowed one last glance at Inuyasha, who looked lost and sad until their gazes met and the steady determination returned. Blushing, she ghosted out of the gala and into the New York night.

* * *

Infinitely more relaxed in her sweat pants and tank top, Kagome wiggled her socked feet to the beat of the Norah Jones song playing softly from her stereo. She had been so nervous about seeing Inuyasha that she hadn't eaten her portion of whatever delicacy had been prepared for her at the gala. Now she was hungry and it was the middle of the night, so she fell back into student habits and had ordered the pizza without even thinking about it.

Her intercom buzzed and she eagerly rose to answer it. "Yes?"

"Delivery here for Miss Kagome." Said the muffled voice. She barely withheld a squeal of glee as she pressed the button to allow entry. In truth she was hungry for something beyond pizza. Something tall, dark, handsome, and deliciously male. Contemplating a horribly cliché affair with the pizza delivery boy, Kagome giggled as she opened her front door to receive her delivery.

Her heart froze in her chest when a charmingly disheveled Inuyasha awaited her on the other side of the door. He looked tired but full of fire as he leaned against her door frame.

When her mouth stopped gaping and started working again, Kagome stared as she asked "What are you doing here?" She flicked a nervous glance back into her flat to make sure there was no underwear sitting out "How did you know I lived here?"

He remained silent as he picked up her hand, opening it palm up. He delicately placed a small teardrop pearl earring in her hand. One of the ones she had been wearing earlier this evening. One of the few things of her mother's she still had.

"Oh…" feeling awkward for having been so rude, she fixed him with a bright smile in hopes of glazing over it. If anything he looked more uncomfortable. "Thank you! I didn't even realize I'd lost…it…"

Kagome frowned. She hadn't lost it. Inuyasha had taken it from her ear when they were dancing. When her eyes blazed back at him in a glare, he knew she'd figured it out.

"I told Mr. Paterson that you had dropped it. He knew you'd go spare without it and offered to return it to you." He nudged her still frozen body through the doorway so that they could both enter the flat "He said he'd get it to you first thing Monday, but I graciously offered to return it to you." Inuyasha brought his face close to hers "I wouldn't want to lose my reputation as a gentleman."

She snorted before she could help it but instead of looking offended, he looked amused. Drawing his nose against hers he breathed against her lips "Kagome…I…"

The buzzer rang for the second time tonight. Kagome jumped out of her trance and rushed over to answer it. "Yes?" Inuyasha smirked at her breathlessness

"Delivery here for Miss Kagome." Another muffled voice responded. As she buzzed them up, Inuyasha slid possessive arms around her waist from behind.

"Did you lose the other earring somewhere else, Cinderella?" he nipped at her lobe in a teasing manner, but his arms remained locked around her.

"I ordered pizza. I thought that you were the delivery boy when I buzzed you up." She responded and then instantly felt embarrassed. Inuyasha was still wearing his Armani tuxedo, with his silver hair still stunning and free. Though he had removed his tie and unbuttoned the top, all inches of him remained sharp and pressed. In contrast, she was wearing a black tank top with a penguin on it and her old pair of sweats with Harvard blazed across the bum. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun and all the makeup had been washed off her face. And in this state, she was entertaining Inuysasha, the playboy of New York's social elite. Was she really going to serve greasy pizza to this upper class prince?

"Oh God…" she moaned in humiliation, shaking him off to get her money together. Her exchange with the delivery boy was short and she silently took the pizza to the kitchen.

Inuyasha trailed after her quietly, his shiny shoes left politely at the door so he wandered in his bare feet. Distractedly she asked him "Why aren't you wearing socks?"

"I never wear them." He answered dismissively as he opened her refrigerator to produce a juice jug. Taking a sniff, he raised an eyebrow at her "Kool-aid?"

Kagome blushed even harder, if that were possible. "I like it." And suddenly she wondered why she was defending herself. She was a grown woman who had worked hard to get where she was. She was not an underling to him. If she liked her pizza greasy and at unusual hours of the night, that was her choice to make. So she drank kool-aid while chilling at home in her sweats and listening to Norah Jones, well that was her life. Jutting out her chin in faux bravado, she glared at him "Got a problem with it?"

His eyes softened and a smile quirked his lip "Nope." He reached around her to grab a mug. "Personally I prefer orange juice."

"Are you drinking kool-aid out of a mug?" She stared at him. He shot her a challenging look but she just shrugged before grabbing a glass for herself. She guessed that if she had some oddities, he was certainly allowed to have them. Though you wouldn't guess he had any from his public persona.

She felt an inkling of comprehension in the bottom of her mind but she ignored it in favour of some pizza. She was about to offer him a slice when she eyed his attire.

Putting down her slice she wandered out of the kitchen to her closet. She rooted through the bottom of it for a minute before turning to return to him. Only Inuyasha wasn't in the kitchen anymore. Rubbing her sore nose where it had hit his chest she blinked up at him. He took a sip of his kool-aid from his mug over her head nonchalantly.

"I was getting you some of my brother's things for you to change into so you wouldn't mess up your tux…" she started. He accepted the clothes and put his mug down on her nightstand. He shrugged the jacket off and hung it on the back of her door as he pushed it shut. Kagome stared at the black jacket, she kind of liked it there on her door.

Before she could realize the fact that she was on the wrong side of the door of the changing Inuyasha, his shirt was already off. Like a moth to the flame, she moved towards the bared skin with a hand extended. Inuyasha stood still as she approached, barely breathing. She stroked his muscles with a light hand, her finger nails just grazing his skin. She traced his defined lines, becoming more bold Kagome put both her palms in his chest and slid them up to rest on his shoulders.

Hypnotized, she let her body slide flush with his as his arms loosely draped around her waist. She stood on her tip-toes and pressed her lips against his. Unable to contain himself any longer, Inuyasha snapped to action and his grip tightened fiercely, crushing her lips to his. As suddenly as his ardor came on, it also stopped as he ripped her from him and tossed her on the bed.

"No…" he panted "..no.."

Humiliated, Kagome's eyes filled with tears. He didn't even want her for a quickie anymore? Since she couldn't get up and leave her own house, Kagome was reduced to reining in her tears until he left. She watched as he gained control over himself.

"I don't want you to think I came over here just for…that." He said in explanation. "I wanted to talk to you."

"So talk." She replied moodily, wondering where Kagome was and who this wanton mistress was in her place.

He chuckled before his face became serious. Approaching the bed, he took her face in his hands. "Kagome…" he looked away, courage failing "I know you think you know who I am…what I am…but the truth is…" he looked embarrassed and cleared his throat "I've only slept with three women in my entire life."

She looked at him dazed. She would have figured 3 women a month… but in his entire life? Who was he trying to kid? She opened her mouth to give him a scathing response but he beat her to it. "The first woman I slept with," he looked at her imploringly to make sure she was listening "I thought she was something extraordinary. She wasn't born high class, but her father had made tons of money in the stock market so she went to my school."

He scrubbed a hand over his face in fatigue "She cheated on me." His face fell sadly "I think she only wanted to use my money and my popularity. So I started serially dating girls in my high school." Seeing her look of disgust he stressed "_Dating_. I only had sex with one of them. And we were both drunk. Anyways, that bitch let it get around that I did her and all, and suddenly she was an instant celebrity. From then on, any girl I took out would be parading around, gloating that she had an affair with _the_ Inuyasha." He tried to look smug, but just looked worn out. Kagome attempted to gather him into her arms, but he shied away.

"Just let me get this out. Lord knows I'll never speak this much again." He laughed a bit to himself. "I was so sick of it all, but then I saw you staring at _Starry Night_ and I was…" his cheeks burned "enchanted I guess…hypnotized." His hand strayed back up to her cheek "you are so much like that painting…so beautiful and full of mystery."

He let his hand fall "When you came up to me at the Christmas ball, I thought it was because you knew. That you could see through all that rumor-shit and see who I was. But I guess when I took you home that night, I didn't really disprove any of those rumors did I?"

"Well you definitely didn't disprove the ones about you being amazing in bed." She muttered, though she could tell he heard her.

He smirked but it lacked his usual life "Seeing you again tonight…made me happy…" he pushed her hair behind her ears "Happier than I can remember being." He leaned in to whisper in her ear "You're so beautiful when you're angry. So alive. There are no more lies or illusions, just pure, angry Kagome."

He sighed and yanked her into a hug, though whether he forgot that he wasn't wearing a shirt or not, she wasn't sure "Then you left. But when we were leaving, you looked back for me. And I knew then that you cared for me. That you wanted me…the same way that I wanted you."

She looked up at him, her eyes swimming with tears. "So this is who I am, Kagome." Inuyasha let go of her to stand before her at the foot of the bed. "Do you still want me?"

Throwing herself at him, she wrapped her arms around him tight and planted a kiss on his lips. "More than ever" she replied as they tumbled back on her bed.

* * *


End file.
